Fossella: Tea Party Changing GOP Dynamics

The tea party movement has altered the Republican Party for the better, seeking to restrain the government and boost the individual, says Vito Fossella, a former Republican congressman from New York.

“The tea party already has changed the dynamics for the Republican Party,” Fossella, now managing director of consulting firm Park Strategies, tells Newsmax.TV. “At the core of the movement is a group of individuals across the country who want to get back to the traditional role of government.”

Unfortunately that role has been expanded over the last few decades to include higher taxes, more regulation, greater deficits and greater debt, he notes.

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Oct. 30th, 2010 - Former New York Congressman Vito Fossella says that, if Republicans retake the House, President Barack Obama will be forced to work with them. If he shuns their initiatives, risks his own defeat if he runs for re-election in 2012, after ignoring the will of the voters.

“I hope the Republican Party embraces many of the [movement’s] ideas and injects them into its legislative initiatives. That would re-instill the sense that the country is great because of individuals like workers, entrepreneurs and creative minds, not just the big spenders in Washington.”

Like most political analysts, Fossella believes the GOP will comfortably seize back control of the House and barely miss doing so in the Senate. No matter what, Republicans will have more influence over legislation, he says.

Fossella hopes the election results will drive President Barack Obama to govern from the center. “He has every right to do so and every opportunity,” he says. “The sad part — and one of the main reasons why Republicans are going to reclaim the House and possibly the Senate — is that he hasn’t governed from the center.”

Everything from healthcare reform to fiscal stimulus has been an overreach, Fossella says. “That’s out of synch with what’s good for the country over the long-term,” he says. “If President Obama doesn’t work and meet with Republicans, he could ultimately lose in 2012, because he’s not responding to the will of the American people.”

On the economic side, Fossella believes the Bush era tax cuts will be extended for everyone during the lame duck congressional session.

In addressing the government’s exploding debt burden, Republicans should first force the federal government to curb spending. “You can’t spend what you don’t have,” Fossella explains. “It saddles future generations with debt.”

As for the long-term, “the only way to truly get the balance sheet in order is to implement pro-growth economic incentives where the private sector can grow and millions of people out of work can get back to work,” he says.